Me and the Mormons

Lifting the front of her brown peasant-style skirt, Gaye began filling it with stones, rounded by rolling to and fro in the constant ebb and flow of tides. Wedged between brown, gray and white stones, bits of sea glass sparkled in the sun.

As I watched her collect her treasures, my mind flew back to the first time we met a decade ago.

I was the new religion editor at the newspaper, and I received a call from Mormon missionaries requesting an interview. In college I had learned all about the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, “The Book of Mormon” and the Prophet Joseph Smith, but I had never spoken to a Mormon face to face.

When I was a little girl, I had a brief encounter with Mormon missionaries. I remember my mother’s anguish as she told me and my brother that there were two men in suits knocking on the doors of our neighbors’ homes. She told us that if we were very quiet, they would go away. The men came to the door, then turned around and left before even ringing the bell; and my mother was astounded. She later noticed the sign in the window I had written in large, childish scrawl that said: “WE ARE NOT HOME.”

Needless to say, it was with some trepidation that I anticipated the interview. I asked a minister about Mormonism, and she told me that it was a cult. I had grown up watching Donnie and Marie Osmond and they seemed so nice, I responded.

A few minutes into the interview, I threw out every misconception I held about Mormons. Senior missionaries Max and Gaye would become the dearest of friends.

Eighteen months later, I met with them for what I thought would be the last time. There were tears in our eyes as we hugged goodbye. They were returning to Utah, but we vowed to stay in touch.

In 2006, I went to the Religion Newswriters Association Conference in Salt Lake City, and I spent four days with Max and Gaye. I visited Temple Square with them, and they accompanied me to the nearby cathedral.

Two years ago, they informed me that they were going on a second mission. While they longed to return to the Boston area, their placement was uncertain.

In the spring of 2011, they were reassigned here. In my professional capacity, I continued to write their faith stories; but on Christmas and Easter, they sat around our table.

Last weekend I invited Max and Gaye for our annual Labor Day bash at the Tiverton summer house, and Fogland was at its best. Sunshine streamed through the clouds bathing the seashore in an ethereal light.

Many years ago Gaye send me a prayer card that read: “As a lighthouse sends its sure, steady beam to guide the ships at sea, the Lord gives His light to guide you … There is no fog too dense, no mariner too lost to feel His love and light. He loves you.”

For my landlocked Utah friends, the beach was a whole new world. They were enthralled by its beauty.

“I am a pioneer,” Gaye said laughing, as she placed shells and stones in her uplifted skirt.

Her ancestors crossed this country in covered wagons, while mine sailed the seas.

We couldn’t be more different and more alike.

Gaye and Max

 

Religion and the election

As a political junkie, I find this presidential election fascinating.

I have not missed one Republican debate since the Iowa Caucus, and CNN is ambient noise in our house. I hang onto every word spoken around the Reporters’ Roundtable on “Meet the Press,” and I wish Tim Russert were a candidate for sainthood.

The presidential candidates often say that this is the most important election of our lives, and they may be right. Over the next four years the president will have to deal with the economy and the dipping Dow, high unemployment rates and lack of jobs, and the Arab Spring.

Obama may be the right leader for our time, or perhaps one of the Republican candidates will be the man for the job. As an independent voter, I listen to all the rhetoric and try to have an open mind until I make the final decision in the ballot box.

But what is most interesting about this race is that religion plays a pivotal role. The two Catholic candidates, Rick Santorum and Newt Gingrich, are constantly on the defense, denouncing Catholic bashing and the loss of religious freedom in this country.

These mainstream Conservatives wrestle with the media and the Obama Administration, but nothing much has been said about Mitt Romney’s faith, Mormonism.

As a religion writer, I would have bet the family farm that his membership in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints would be a hot topic, especially in the Bible Belt.

Personally, I think his Mormon faith is what makes his candidacy so compelling. No one can dispute that Mormons have family values, the mantra of the Republican Party during the Bush years. Their large, close-knit families, disciplined lifestyle and high moral standards are exemplary.

I am blessed with close Mormon friends, who gave me a copy of “The Book of Mormon” to use as a reference when writing stories about their faith. Inside the front cover, they wrote:

“We know with all our heart that strong families are the lifeblood of all communities and nations. We know with all our heart and soul that strong family relationships are founded on eternal proven principles that have been taught by Jesus Christ and by prophets throughout the ages of time. The Holy Bible is a witness of our Savior Jesus Christ and the principles He taught. The Book of Mormon is another witness of Jesus Christ and teaches these same principles. We are grateful for these two books of scriptures that unfold these important truths as we strive to continually strengthen our family. We know that we are close as a family and closer to our Father in Heaven as we read from the scriptures daily.”

Four years ago, we elected our first African-American president, and perhaps the time has come to elect our first Mormon president.

During his candidacy and presidency, Barack Obama has spoken as eloquently as the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. about his faith and heritage.

Conversely, Romney touts his business acumen and mums the word on Mormonism.

It would be refreshing if he would reveal the real Romney, the man of deeply held religious principles. Our American family needs strengthening.